


Death

by BSplendens



Series: Non-fandom things [2]
Category: None - Fandom
Genre: Gen, Hope instead of Life because Life is a mean little cuss that hurts people, If Death was a person, It's a little bit sad, Just something I wanted to write, Not my personal beliefs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-08
Updated: 2015-05-08
Packaged: 2018-03-29 13:39:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3898327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BSplendens/pseuds/BSplendens
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Musings on if Death was a living being as opposed to an idea. It's sort of... sweet, I guess? And a little bit sad.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Death

Death has never killed someone, in all his time in existence. That is up to life. He is merely a ferryman... He does not control when someone comes to him, he does not control where they go. He simply takes them from place to place. And Death is merciful, kind... He does not wish for there to be pain. He ends pain.   
Death is a man in a tattered grey cloak.   
His appearance varies depending upon his passenger, but he always takes the form they will find least frightening, as he does not want to scare them. He does not carry a scythe. He carries a shepherd's crook, and he uses it to shoo off the stray demons that sometimes follow him. No matter who he is transporting, the demons do not get them until they leave him.   
Death comes quietly to people, no matter how much they screamed before.   
He stops beside them, and he reaches out and takes their hand. And no matter how sick or old or injured they were, they stand up and they walk with him, leaving their body behind. As they walk, the world fades around them, replaced by the banks of a calm river surrounded by an unimaginably ancient forest. Death is a realm-walker, and he takes the souls from the realm of the living to the realm of the dead.   
His ship is not black and hung with skulls. It is dark, yes, but it is the soothing kind of dark found in a dreamless slumber. The rails are a deep ruby red, and the ship's wheel is traced with intricate patterns of gold words, so tiny the words look like hairs. If you look closely enough, you will find the death of every single person who has ever lived.   
The sails are made of feathers, feathers from every bird species that no longer exists on the planet. They flash a multitude of colors as the sails spread, a gentle wind pushing the ship down along the river.   
The creaking timbers are of forest giants, trees so ancient they saw the rise and fall of not just kings but kingdoms as well. It is said that if you listen close enough, you can hear the history of every risen king and every fallen monarch, whispered in the soft groans and creaks of the wood.  
Along the banks can be seen glimpses of things that no longer exist... Dinosaurs, great Ice Age creatures, and every animal species that has gone extinct since the world began. This land is the land of the vanished species, and it runs on nearly forever. If the souls are lucky, they may catch a glimpse of a massive prehistoric reptile swimming below the ship, lazily keeping pace until it gets too far along the river.   
For at the end of the river is a waterfall, a waterfall that stretches down into a pit of hellfire. And Death knows what lays at the bottom. But he does not falter... The ship sails directly out over the pit, into thin air that reeks of brimstone and burning flesh.   
If the soul he is ferrying is an evil soul, Death looks back over his shoulder one last time, his eyes showing regret and sorrow... Then a massive wind sweeps through the ship. Death does not move, but the sails shudder and billow, every ancient timber creaks and groans, and the soul is swept off into the abyss. The demons quite like this chance to steal the soul away where Death can see them, as they know he does not like suffering. He would save the evil souls if he could... He would release them in the land of the vanished, let them fend for themselves. But he cannot.   
If the soul is a good soul, Death looks back and tells them not to be afraid. He does not speak, but his eyes say everything he wants to tell them... There is nothing to fear. If there is a good soul in his ship, the sails light up with a soft glow, pushing it up and past the demons in the pit. As they rise, they pass up through a layer of clouds, into what looks like another land of vanished species. But this one is different; it is every dead pet who was ever loved. The pets know when their master is coming, and they leap into the ship to greet their master... Even the fish, who can now fly free of the water. They will accompany their master to Heaven.   
If the soul is a child... Then and only then does Death speak. He leaves the ship to steer itself, as it has done this so many times it cannot go wrong, and he goes to talk to them. He crouches in front of the child, takes the little hand, and soothes away the fear. For no child will fall into the pit... The children are safe. And as they pass up through the land of the loved creatures, one or two will leap into the boat to join the child on their journey. For some of these creatures will never see their master again... They need someone, and so do the children.   
The babies... Oh, those are the ones that Death both loves and hates seeing. He does not like that they die so young, but Death is, at his core, a very caring being. He does not leave the babies to stand for themselves, as he does the others... He takes them gently into his arms and holds them the entire time, so they will not be afraid. And he chooses one creature to accompany them... Sometimes it is a pet, other times it is a wild thing that never knew the touch of Man. Either way, the creature will stay with the baby for the rest of eternity, making absolutely sure they are safe.   
When they reach the Gates, Death gently stops the ship, giving a small nod to whoever stands guard at the time. The adults must walk out on their own, but he stays to make sure they are safe. However, Death takes the children to the gates himself... He will take the child's hand and gently help them out of the ship, walking them over soft cloud and up to the gatekeeper. Sometimes he will gently ruffle their hair, or sometimes he will crouch and tell them once more that everything will be okay.   
The babies he carries, only unwillingly giving them to the gatekeeper once he has to. He would try to keep one, but his duties leave no room for a baby. Not yet.   
Death does not walk through the gates himself, though... He cannot enter until the end of his duties. Some day past the end of time, someone will come for him. Some day, once days no longer hold meaning, Death will be allowed in. When that time comes, he will no doubt find a young one to care for... Perhaps the last child to die.   
But for now, he turns the ship around and sails back down through the realms, back to the world of the living. Time is altered in the realm of the dead, so this entire journey takes him but a fraction of a second in the living realm. It used to be slower, but now he must rush to keep up with the numbers of people he transports every day.   
Sometimes Death crosses paths with another soft black ship, this one tinged red around the edges. This ship is made of trees that do not yet exist, the sails woven from the fur of animals yet to come. The ship's lone inhabitant is not Life, as one might expect. It is Hope. Hope is a slim figure, neither man nor women, clad in a cloak of milky white with blood-red and seedling-green tracery. Death cannot tell more than that... He has never set foot on this ship to examine it more closely. Death and Hope exchange small nods as they pass, but they never speak and they do not slow. Not now. At the end of time, Death and Hope can meet and talk, and perhaps they will examine each other's ships.   
Hope's ship carries tiny flickers of life down to the living... New souls, soul-seeds for the unborn babies. And sometimes it is only a soul-seed Death takes back, a glimmer of life extinguished before it could bloom. The soul-seeds he carries carefully in one hand, protected from everything. These are the ones he hates the most... And no doubt they are the worst for whichever gatekeeper he has to hand them to.   
Death does not have a bad job, despite what one might think. He has seen every sentient being who has ever died, and thus he is very wise. Naturally curious, Death is glad for the things he learns every trip he takes, even when the things sadden him.   
Death is a kind man in a torn grey cloak, and he has never taken a life.

**Author's Note:**

> Another one of those ideas that jumped on me. I like this one.   
> There's a sequel, In The End.


End file.
